No charges in case of missing woman, 23

STOCKTON - Prosecutors filed no criminal charges Wednesday against a Stockton man last seen with a 23-year-old woman who vanished earlier this month.

Scott Smith

STOCKTON - Prosecutors filed no criminal charges Wednesday against a Stockton man last seen with a 23-year-old woman who vanished earlier this month.

Meanwhile, Stockton police officers and San Joaquin County sheriff's deputies spent more than two hours Wednesday evening searching the Calaveras River for the body of Dalene Janice Carlson, who disappeared Aug. 7.

They will resume the search this morning. Police Lt. Aaron Rose said officers were to keep watch over the search area overnight to keep out intruders.

The search was centered just east of the river's Pacific Avenue overcrossing, not far from the University of the Pacific campus. By dark, officers, some on foot and others using a small aluminum boat, called off their search.

Investigators still consider Jason Ross Gilley, 25, a person of interest in the disappearance of Carlson. But instead of facing criminal charges, prosecutors said Wednesday afternoon that Gilley is expected to be released from jail.

San Joaquin County Deputy District Attorney Robert Himelblau said he didn't file charges against Gilley because there is no tangible evidence of a crime, and Carlson is nowhere to be found.

"There's no proof she's dead," Himelblau said. "There's no proof she was kidnapped."

Finding her body was the focus of the Calaveras River search. With dozens of curious onlookers, police and sheriff's deputies slowly and carefully traversed the river from a point about 30 yards east of Pacific Avenue to a distance of almost 500 feet. Yellow crime-scene tape blocked bikers and pedestrians trying to use the popular Calaveras River trail.

Searchers using a long pole-like device occasionally pulled debris from the river but did not find Carlson.

The case has been sent back to police for more investigation.

Police have said that said Gilley was seen with Carlson, a newcomer to Stockton, late Aug. 6 or early the morning of Aug. 7. The two were drinking together at Finnegan's Pub and Grill on Pacific Avenue.

After leaving the pub, a surveillance camera captured Gilley and Carlson making a purchase together at the nearby Food 4 Less on Hammer Lane. She hasn't been seen since.

Investigators interviewed Gilley on two occasions, and he was arrested because police said he made inconsistent statements. He was booked into the San Joaquin County Jail early Monday.

Gilley declined a request by The Record for a jailhouse interview Tuesday.

His mother, Debbie Cooke, said in a phone interview that she supports her son and believes he did nothing more than give Carlson a ride home that night. This week has been very difficult, she said, between worrying over her son and Carlson, whom she called her son's friend.

"Our whole family is concerned about her whereabouts," Cooke said. "We want her home safely as much as her family does."

Gilley was scheduled for arraignment Wednesday in San Joaquin County Superior Court on kidnapping and false imprisonment charges stemming from Carlson's disappearance.

Bailiff's didn't bring Gilley into court, and San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge Franklin Stephenson announced that no charges were filed.

Stockton police spokesman Officer Pete Smith said Gilley remains a person of interest, and officers are counting on his cooperation. Investigators believe foul play is a factor in Carlson's disappearance, given the length of time she has been missing.

Police have increased their efforts to solve the case. Homicide detectives have now joined the investigation in the event their worst fears come true and the case takes a tragic turn, Smith said.

"It's tough to backtrack," Smith said. "So we want those eyes and ears on the case."

More about Gilley's background and his relationship with Carlson became public Wednesday.

Papers on file at Superior Court show that Gilley had been arrested in August 2006 on suspicion of pandering and procuring on Wilson Way, a known hangout for prostitutes. The case was dismissed in November 2007, court records show.

For her part, Carlson had recently relocated from Sands, Idaho, to Stockton, where she lived with her aunt, Margret Baker, and sought a fresh start in life. She planned to start classes at San Joaquin Delta College.

Shawna VanArnam, 27, of Clear Lake in Lake County, said she saw Gilley and Carlson together briefly on the Friday morning before Carlson vanished. VanArnam has a 3-year-old son with Gilley. VanArnam and Gilley had dated for 41/2 years, she said.

Gilley came to her front door at about 10:15 a.m. to pick up their son for Gilley's weekend visit. In the brief time VanArnam saw them together, she said Gilley and Carlson acted like a couple.

They stayed about 15 minutes, VanArnam said.

"They looked like they've been partying," said VanArnam, adding that Carlson appeared tired, wore large sunglasses and appeared to have on makeup from the night before.

VanArnam said Gilley had anger issues, but she said he never abused her. Rather, in fits of rage he would go outside and punch the car or a tree, VanArnam said.

Learning that Gilley had been suspected in Carlson's disappearance made VanArnam sick to her stomach, she said. More than anything, she fears now for her son's safety because Gilley has custody every other weekend, she said.

VanArnam said that this weekend, she's not handing over her son to Gilley, who lived with his mother and never kept a job for more than a few months.

"If he doesn't like it, he can take me to court," she said. "I think there's more to this story."

Baker, the missing woman's aunt, said news that Gilley would not be charged was both scary and heartbreaking. The family remains hopeful that Carlson will return home.

She said Carlson's mother, Narlene Flagg, is expected to arrive in Stockton from Idaho this afternoon. Baker said Flagg wrote a thoughtful letter, telling Baker not to feel responsible. Baker said she can't help but blame herself.

"I feel that if I didn't let her go that night, ..." she said. "It's making it hard right now."

Anyone with information about Carlson's whereabouts is asked to call the Stockton Police Department at (209) 937-8377.